2. LaserDiscs

Also known as DiscoVision in the US, LaserDiscs were the size of dinner plates but lacked a key function when it came to consumer versions. They could not record TV, which meant you still needed a video recorder.

But while LaserDiscs found a limited market in the US and Europe, it was a hit with videophiles thanks to its higher video and audio quality compared to Betamax and VHS tapes.

It was also more popular in Japan – where prices were kept lower – and parts of South East Asia. But the technology used in LaserDiscs was the basis for CDs, DVD and Blu-ray Disc.

3. Sega Dreamcast

It was the first games console to come with a built-in modem to link to online gaming and shifted some big initial numbers after its launch in 1998.

It made Sega $100 million on its first day on sale in the US, according to technology news site cnet.com. But that early success tailed off as the wildly popular Sony Playstation 2 arrived – with the Dreamcast proving to be Sega’s last ever games console. But many feel the Dreamcast was ahead of its time.

4. Microsoft Tablet PC

Apple may get the plaudits for helping create today’s market for tablet computers thanks to the iPad, but Microsoft actually unveiled a Windows tablet PC prototype back in 2000.

The company said the vision for its Tablet PC was that it would be a full Windows computer but with the ability of the user to write on the screen using a stylus, with devices coming to market two years later.

But the stylus has been identified by some in the industry as one of the reasons why the Tablet PC failed to take off unlike the “touch and swipe” iPad several years later.